mackerel from a dinghy sometime before 5pm.

Search for two men missing off Waterford
Sunday, 23 May 2010 22:08
A search is under way for two men reported missing off the Waterford coast.

They had been seen angling for mackerel from a dinghy sometime before 5pm.

It is understood they drove to the area earlier in the day, possibly from south Tipperary.

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Two lifejackets were found in the dingy but there was no sign of either man.

RNLI crews from Helvick Head and Youghal have been taking part in the search, as well as a number of local fishing boats and the Search and Rescue Helicopter from Waterford.

Weather conditions were said to be very calm at the time.

Meanwhile, a search in under way in the North for a man who went missing while swimming with friends in Lough Erne.

The man was last seen in the water at Castle Archdale Country Park in Co Fermanagh this afternoon.

Can't understand this it was like a pond out there today....

hope its not the site member who was looking for advice on inflatables in cork harbour. even in the calmest of conditions the sea will take no prisoners currents ,tides,freak waves so much can happen in minutes to change the conditions. i hope there found safe and they learn that lidl inflatables are toys not fishing boats

i hope this turns out better than it did for the guy in the erne who was recovered this morning . things can change so quickly as we whitnessed yesterday. we were fishing rocks in portrush (co antrim). and from 7am until 4pm the sea was like a pond. then the wind changed direction and within 20 mins a 3 meter swell appeared from nowhere and all the small dorys and sailing boats came racing back into the harbour in a rush. we watched a guy who went out around 1pm on a yack battle the currents to get back in. he covered the same stretch of water on the way out in about 10 mins and it took him almost 40mins to repeat the same distance at full steam on the way back in. we were a bit worried about the guy and kept a close watch on him until he got safely back in. scary stuff

here the latest news from RTE: http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/0524/waterford.html

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Search for men missing off Waterford resumes
listen Monday, 24 May 2010 11:00

Air, sea and coastline searches are getting under way again this morning after two men were reported missing from a small dinghy off the Waterford coast yesterday afternoon.

The two men have been named locally as John O'Brien and Pat Esmonde, both in their mid-30s.

Both men had been living in South Tipperary.

Earlier in the day the two men had driven from south Tipperary to Helvick on the Ring Peninsula to go angling for mackerel.

Sea conditions were very calm all afternoon.

A fisherman from Helvick told gardaí that before 5pm he saw one of the men in the water near the dinghy calling for help, three-quarters of a mile from the coast.

When he got to the location, both men had disappeared.

Two lifejackets were found in the dinghy.

A team of nine divers from the naval service is preparing to make a dive at the last known location where two men went missing.

Weather conditions are quite favourable for diving at present but are expected to change in the afternoon.

After an initial assessment, the divers hope to be in the water after 11.30am.

The search and rescue helicopter from Waterford is also at the scene but visibility is poor due to low-lying cloud and fog.

Relatives of the two missing men are in Helvick, Co Waterford.


This really is terrible news. Myself and Beebub 2 were out from dalky yesterday. The amount of fellas out on the small boats without jackets on was unbelievable. There was one boat with five lads in it and three of them were standing up. Only one of them had bothered putting his jacket on.

This is really sad news, terrible story. It shows that a calm sea can be just as dangerous if it leads to the misconception that wearing of a life jacket is somehow no longer necessary.

Terrible news again! Hope it turns out ok for all concerned.

god help the familys,and its a sickener that they had two lifejackets on board.please lads get over the macho "i don't need a lifejacket" syndrome,and wear the jacket! these lads would be alive today if they had theres on!

heard this on the news yesterday

reports at lunchtime said they recovered the two lads bodies 100 metres where the dingie was recovered .god rest there souls.and give strength to there families .lads anyone reading this tread.look at the tradegy in this not only were they in a plastic toy with great sea conditions but with no lifejackets been worn. been used as seats id say. i have in the past somtimes took off the life jacket and hung it b eside me on the boat. but as this shows you dont get time to grab anything in a split second if we all stick to lifejacket on. we wont have to be offering condolences to any more families
may they rest in peace

its a sad week for all anglers there is not one person that fishes than dont think about this . it takes 20 seconds puts on your lifejacket lads and ladies i have done it years ago went out with out life jackets never again if not for you sake but your familys and friends god forbid anything happens to you if your jacket is on you will be found hopfully soon rather than later my prays are with there familys and friends